The realization came as quite a shock to me as both Charlotte and I didn't talk much after that, with both of us choosing to remain silent while in the bath. But that didn't last for too long as for some reason, it felt like it was getting too hot for me, leading us to both exit the bath pre-maturely.
With both of us drying ourselves off and getting changed, I think back on what happened just before... I didn't really think my situation would be similar to the princess from that movie. Of course Charlotte isn't a criminal and isn't trying to bring me to a far away castle, and there's many other differences as well, but I looking back at the movie, I feel like my feelings are quite similar. Does that really mean that I want to get closer with Charlotte in that way?
Glancing over at Charlotte as we both finish getting dressed, I wonder for a moment if it's okay to ask.
"Charlotte."
"Eh?"
"About before, in the bath."
"I-it's okay! I understand what you meant, yeah, haha." Yeah... She's definitely acting different. A part of me doesn't want to ask this, but I feel like how I am now, I might be able to figure something out.
"Could I ask something?" With that in mind, I have to ask.
"S-sure?"
"...Could we ki-"
"Charlotte~" Suddenly, cutting off my words, Lisa's voice echoes in the distance, muffled through the walls. And in the next moment, the door opens. "You left your guys' clothes in the bathroom. Want me to wash them? Or nah."
"Ah- Sorry. I can take care of it." Charlotte ends up moving towards Lisa before grabbing our clothes from her.
"Alright, cool. Well then, have a good night you two~" Lisa says as she walks off in the direction of the bathroom.
"I'll be back in a sec, Shiro."
"Nn..."
And now with Charlotte also gone, heading downstairs to the laundry room, I feel like a sudden weight as fallen onto me, but strangely enough, I feel a bit relieved, almost like this weight has helped clear my mind, brining me back down in reality. I guess it was a stupid idea to ask for a kiss. Looking back at just before, Charlotte didn't seem like her normal self so it would've been inappropriate to ask for something like that, especially now that I know what it means.
"Haah~" Breathing a sigh of relief, I sit down on our bed as I end up looking at my mask that's still there on the bedside table.
I end up recalling the first time I was able to see thanks to Charlotte swapping out my mask for this one. I even got to see what I look like.
"Pfft, hehe." I still can't believe that I was that scared of my own reflection. But even through all of that, Charlotte still remained by my side.
Would us getting into 'that' kind of relationship be that different than we are now? In the movie we watched, it ended with the two characters planning on getting married, but it didn't really show anything about their new relationship. Maybe I should ask Charlotte about that instead of asking for a kiss.
"Sorry, I'm back." As if right on time, Charlotte walks back into the room, closing the door behind her. "What was it you wanted to say?" She looks like she's back to normal now... I guess I can just ask her now?
"Ah, yes. Uhm. I just had a question about the movie."
"Hmm? Sure." She then takes her seat beside me. "What was the question?"
"It's about the two characters in the end. They got married, right? So I was just wondering how that would change their relationship." I ask whilst Charlotte began hand drying my hair with a towel, my back facing her.
"Hmmm~ I guess that's up for the people watching to interpret it? I'm not too sure how marriages would work in a world like that."
"Then what would a marriage be like in this world?"
"Well... I'm not too sure myself. I've never been in a relationship like that before, but I've heard some stories from Lisa."
"Wait, Lisa's married?"
"Pfft! Hehehe. No, but she has been in a few relationships. She describes it as something like a normal friendship, but with certain changes. You also tend to prioritize your partner over others generally."
Prioritize over others... I guess that does resonate with me a bit. I always have Charlotte in my mind, especially if it involves her safety. If I could, I honestly wouldn't want to leave her side.
"So then, how does someone get into a relationship like that?"
"Hmmm, typically people just ask people out on a date, and if the two like each other enough, then they'll continue to see each other? That's how Lisa does it at least."
That's it! So then that means I just need to ask Charlotte out on this date and see where we go from there! Once I feel Charlotte has finished drying my hair, I turn around to face her, which seemed to have taken her aback a bit.
"Then, Charlotte!"
"Y-yes?"
"Let's go on a date!"
"...Pfft! Fufufu." But surprisingly, after a few seconds of silence, Charlotte ends up chuckling, covering her mouth with her hand.
"D-did I say something wrong?"
"N-no, hehe. I just didn't know how else to react, haha." I'm a bit confused on how I'm meant to feel about this. But before I can ask- "Shiro." Charlotte straightens up, looking back into my eyes.
"Yes?"
"I don't think dates will work for us at this point."
"What?" Wait, does that mean that I can't even try it out with her?
"Don't take it the wrong way. I just mean that we spend all our time together as is. Many people would think that our movie we watched before would be considered a date."
Is she trying to say that we've been dating this whole time? Then what am I meant to make of this then?
"...But I want to be closer with you-"
But suddenly, as I was lost in what to do, Charlotte pulls me into an embrace as the fresh scent of her shampoo fills my lungs. It's so sweet that the weight I felt earlier just crumbled away.
"Fufu. Is this close enough?"
"...Pfft." I couldn't help but giggle at her words as i end up wrapping my arms around her as well, accepting her embrace. "Nn!"